English cricket is embarking upon what will be another confused and lengthy bout of soul-searching after Michael Yardy became the second high-profile player in five years to abandon a tour because he was suffering from depression.

First came Michael Trescothick's crippling "black wings" of depression, which revealed themselves in anxiety attacks and which he suggested arose from homesickness, exhaustion and guilt at being away from home.

Now Yardy has pulled out of England's World Cup squad shortly before the quarter-final against Sri Lanka in Colombo that, had he been selected, would have ranked as one of the greatest occasions of his career. Yardy flew back to Heathrow on Thursday with the exact causes of his depression unexplained, apart from an indication in an ECB statement that he would receive specialist advice to help overcome an illness that he "had been managing for a prolonged period of time".

There will be some who put Yardy's withdrawal from England's World Cup campaign down to a recognition of his own cricketing inadequacies – Geoffrey Boycott made such a careless connection and caused outrage in the process – but that did not capture the prevailing mood as English cricket, administrators and players once again found themselves discussing the game's propensity to expose, at best, and cause, at worst, tendencies towards depressive illness.

A statement from Yardy, the Sussex all-rounder, said: "Leaving at this stage of a World Cup campaign was a very difficult decision to make but I felt that it was the only sensible option for me and I wanted to be honest about the reason behind that decision. I would like to wish the squad all the very best ahead of the game on Saturday. I would appreciate some privacy over the coming weeks while I spend time with family and close friends ahead of what I hope will be a successful season for Sussex."

Like Trescothick, Yardy is confident that he can manage his depression within the confines of the county circuit. Both have been successful captains, regarded as "giving" individuals with a high sense of personal integrity. Unlike Trescothick, Yardy is unlikely to make abortive attempts to resume his England career. Trescothick was a high-class opening batsman whose true value was perhaps appreciated only when he had gone; Yardy would not object to the suggestion that he is a limited player who has achieved more than he ever anticipated and that, at 30, his England career must surely be over.

Sussex were quick to offer support. Mark Robinson, their cricket manager, said: "Sussex are very proud of Michael Yardy and very supportive of his decision, not only to come home but also to be prepared to go public with the reasons. He's always been a person admired for his utmost honesty and integrity, and his courage in dealing with this issue emphasises that. As captain and one of our leading players, we'll give him all the time and all the support necessary so that he can continue to lead this club forward."

Hugh Morris, the managing director of England, made equally supportive noises. In their sensitive response towards players in stressful situations, Morris's ECB have a good record –they supported Steve Davies when he decided to come out as a gay man, only the second time an international player had openly voiced the fact that he was gay in a major team sport in Britain for a generation.

But the ECB cannot easily avoid the implication that the perpetual nature of the international cricketing calendar is placing stresses and strains on players to what, this winter at least, has become an intolerable degree. Experts in depressive illness agree that homesickness, exhaustion, illness, stress, traumatic events and balancing of conflicting lifestyles and demands might all have an effect – and international cricket is remarkably adept at delivering most of them.

An Ashes tour followed by a World Cup this winter has brought extreme demands. Among a group of England players who kicked their heels at the poolside of the five-star Taj Samudra Hotel in Colombo and reflected upon Yardy's departure, were some who have borne the brunt of this relentless schedule, away from home, apart from an interlude of three days, since the last week of October. Yardy was not part of the Ashes-winning squad but he had also voluntarily gone to New Zealand to get in tune before the World Cup.

Yardy became the fourth player to pull out of England's World Cup squad in a matter of weeks, following Kevin Pietersen, Stuart Broad and Ajmal Shahzad, whose involvements were prematurely ended by injury. The ICC's technical committee quickly approved a replacement – England would have been furious had they not – and the Yorkshire leg-spinning all-rounder, Adil Rashid, was called up with the intention of him acclimatising in time for the semi-final. According to confidential tour reports, Rashid has not always adjusted easily to touring life, although there have been no symptoms of depression.

Yardy was a vital component of England's Twenty20 World Cup win in the Caribbean earlier this year, an Everyman whose inelegant, slow left-armers somehow proved mightily effective. But he has had a troubled time on the field during the World Cup. He took only two wickets against India, Ireland and South Africa and looked innocuous on Indian pitches, drawing attention to the fact that England utilise his bowling as a defensive option in one-day cricket even though he is not a regular bowler at county level.